PMO staff's six figure moves

[Derek 2.0]

We don't know who it is. Some people are worth more money than others. That's why we'd need more details.

Because the "open and transparent" Liberals won't release who spent what........CBC has an interactive graph with a breakdown of expenses by department and who approved what....but more damning from the CBC:

In a document tabled in the House of Commons, the government said it spent $373,921 to reimburse the cost of moving services and $52,777 on hotels, but there is little detail on how $685,118 was spent.

The Prime Minister's Office says that all of the spending and reimbursements followed government guidelines. However, it could not say what kind of expenses contributed to the $685,118 in unexplained spending.

Under the government's Treasury Board rules for ministerial offices, it is left to each cabinet minister's discretion to decide whether to reimburse costs associated with a political staff member relocating to Ottawa to work for the minister.

"Any benefits are negotiated between the minister and the individual," the guidelines read. "Any negotiated relocation assistance for those individuals is to be paid from the minister's own other operating budget."

Bev Oda resigned for pissing away several thousand on limos and hotel upgrades.......and promptly resigned.....I don't know in what universe these Liberal Ministers involved, with nearly 3/4ers of a million dollars in "unexplained expenses", unrelated to their staffers moves, keep their jobs...............this is graft pure and simple, and there is now blood in the water......if Trudeau doesn't fire these Ministers this will hang around his neck and he'll spend a whole wack of political capital.....capital he is going to need to spend to enact all of his unpopular policies with this Fall sitting...

[?Impact]

Let us be clear, we have absolutely nothing from the Harper era to compare to, and they didn't release anywhere near the detail the Liberals have let alone what they are crying for. I don't agree with these expenses, l think they are outrageous, but making unsubstantiated claims about the Harper era is a sign of partisan desperation.

[Boges]

It's funny how people are now downplaying CPC entitlement scandals that were big news when they broke.

6 figures to move is obviously funny business and it's why people can't stand Civil Servants.

This also comes with the MPs and Staff expensing huge amounts for Limos, Hotels, Food and a Professional Photographer in Paris.

[Boges]

We don't have a detailed accounting, so it could be anything. I suspect the bulk is living expenses for several weeks until the new staffers found and moved into a place. If the closing was 6 weeks (very conservative estimate) on a house, that would be $12,600 on hotel alone ($300/night for downtown Ottawa). Several trips back and forth, bringing in family, etc. It quickly adds up. Moving expenses would be about $10-$20k for a family across the country, depending on the size of the family and stuff they have, and no not airfreight. I don't understand the real-estate costs being included, but if that is the case then that could easily be $15-$40k.

Great, some of these crooks charged upwards of 6-figures. Others did it for around $5,000.

[cybercoma]

Great, some of these crooks charged upwards of 6-figures. Others did it for around $5,000.

Why? What was claimed in the 6-figure expenses that wasn't claimed in the $5k ones?

[cybercoma]

I agree that it's ridiculous. I want to know why​ it was that high. What was allegedly covered?

​I always find it stupid, as well, that the richest amongst them get the most reimbursed, when really shouldn't it be the poorest among them who need the most help moving? The same stuff happens everywhere. Look at university presidents. They make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year but then they're usually given a house that's paid for and maintained by the universities where they work. They're given travel grants and all kinds of other amenities, when they're literally the most capable of paying for those things. Meanwhile, the profs starting at $65k are expected to pay for their own travel, research, and publication fees.

[eyeball]

The Liberals are back!!!!!!!!!

I thought you guys said you were putting in measures, something about transparency I think, that were supposed to end this sort of thing.

Half measures are more like it.

[PIK]

I heard trudeau will not say who the 2 are. Since he is never around I doubt he even knows who they are or what was even paid out. I am sure the libs will do what they can to keep him out of the house.

[Boges]

You can all say "Meh" to this but every story that comes out about the Liberals fleecing taxpayer for entitlements and stories about how they're not really doing business much different than the CPC at all, the less "Sunny" JT's ways will seem.

[cybercoma]

I thought you guys said you were putting in measures, something about transparency I think, that were supposed to end this sort of thing.

Half measures are more like it.

They just needed some more time. 9 years wasn't long enough to accomplish anything apparently.

[PIK]

So the new liberal mantra is ''they did it to''

[Smallc]

Did they?

We have no details.

[msj]

You can all say "Meh" to this but every story that comes out about the Liberals fleecing taxpayer for entitlements and stories about how they're not really doing business much different than the CPC at all, the less "Sunny" JT's ways will seem.

Yes that is how it works.

Then the CPC gets in and the cycle is refreshed.

Meh.

[Smallc]

And you know why? Because political parties are made up of people.

[Smallc]

.

Edited September 21, 2016 by Smallc

[ironstone]

Oooh, more mountains out of mole hills.

Harper will be back in 2019 for sure now.

The bottom line is,progressives see absolutely nothing wrong with these Liberal "mole hills" because we are talking about the Liberals after all.

The Ottawa Citizen buried this in the back pages,unlike the front page negative headlines they always printed for the Conservatives.Just saying...

[ironstone]

Oooh, more mountains out of mole hills.

Harper will be back in 2019 for sure now.

The bottom line is,progressives see absolutely nothing wrong with these Liberal "mole hills" because we are talking about the Liberals after all.

The Ottawa Citizen buried this in the back pages,unlike the front page negative headlines they always printed for the Conservatives.Just saying...

[msj]

The bottom line is,progressives see absolutely nothing wrong with these Liberal "mole hills" because we are talking about the Liberals after all.

The Ottawa Citizen buried this in the back pages,unlike the front page negative headlines they always printed for the Conservatives.Just saying...

No, we are just realists.

We know any party in power is going to do corrupt things.

We tolerate, to a point, the party that generally favours our perspective.

Once they go past that point, however, watch out.

And, voila, a new government comes into power.

Same as it ever was; meet the new boss, same as the old boss and all that.

Conservatives do this too.

NDP'ers don't because they don't get elected (at the federal level)

[?Impact]

The bottom line is,progressives see absolutely nothing wrong with these Liberal "mole hills" because we are talking about the Liberals after all.

The Ottawa Citizen buried this in the back pages,unlike the front page negative headlines they always printed for the Conservatives.Just saying...

Says who? I see a big problem with the huge expenses, how did we develop a system that allows it? Rules were set in 2008, who was responsible?

[ironstone]

Says who? I see a big problem with the huge expenses, how did we develop a system that allows it? Rules were set in 2008, who was responsible?

Abuse of taxpayer dollars and loose interpretations of already vague rules is not exclusively limited to Conservatives.It's morally wrong no matter who does it,and this sort of thing was going on well before Harper became PM.

[Derek 2.0]

I thought you guys said you were putting in measures, something about transparency I think, that were supposed to end this sort of thing.

Half measures are more like it.

Uhh.....aren't we talking about it now? That would seem pretty transparent.....These figures are the totals as of June of this year, when the Official Opposition requested them......likewise all the other "Liberal spending" figures obtained through access to information requests........

In my mind this is more effective, the Queen's Opposition doing their job, through legally obtained documents, protecting the public's tax dollars.....far better then having to rely upon someone in the Government with integrity (or an axe to grind) stealing said documents and leaking them to the press.

[Derek 2.0]

I agree that it's ridiculous. I want to know why​ it was that high. What was allegedly covered?

That's a good question, per the CBC linked article, the Liberals can't account (or won't) for nearly 700K of the million+ spent.

[Derek 2.0]

Why? What was claimed in the 6-figure expenses that wasn't claimed in the $5k ones?

Either the Liberals don't know or they aren't telling with regards to the "unaccounted" ~685k

------------

What did Duffy, Harb, Wallin and Brazeau's expenses total again????

[Smoke]

Says who? I see a big problem with the huge expenses, how did we develop a system that allows it? Rules were set in 2008, who was responsible?

OK I get it now! The Liberal party gorging at the trough is all Stephen Harper's fault.

[Moonlight Graham]

I think this really shows you the kind of people that are being put in charge to help run this country. When you have such amazing patriots that will gladly accept this kind of ludicrous money from hardworking taxpayers working to facilitate those whose job it is to represent the interests of Canadians, you really have to question whether the cabinet ministers who approved these costs and the staffers who accepted them really give a crap about the interests of the country over the interests of themselves. Only a year in and the Liberals are smelling like the rotten fish they've so often been in the past.

REAL change! Yup, as has been said, here's the new boss, same as the old boss...a bunch of arrogant, entitled, selfish, morally hollow un-patriots.